Monday, January 31, 2011

Just some thoughts...

I like to gripe, but I hate myself for it. I try to avoid it here, because there's already entirely too much negative energy floating around, but today is an exception. couple things on my mind.

Montgomery Bell Trail Closures
this weekend we experienced Colorado Spring-like conditions here in the Nashville area. it was gorgeous, warm, and dry, perfect for riding. Montgomery Bell closes when super wet or when freeze/thaw conditions exist. for the uninitiated, freeze/thaw is the term for the worst thing ever, when the moisture content of the ground is uber-high and it freezes, causing "heaving" which, if ridden on, results in a completely fucked trail. the rangers at Montgomery Bell close it up by locking the gate when this happens. they locked it up this weekend. it shouldn't have been locked. people rode anyway, it was the best weekend of riding I've had out there in a long long time. there's a very interesting thread on the Nashville Mountain Bike board that you can soak up if you want a little more context.

Prairie Home Companion
the radio dial in my car stays on NPR. I love it. except for Sunday morning at 11 when it's hijacked by Garrison Keilor and the rest of the Prairie Home Companion crew. this show is not funny. not even remotely. when it comes on after Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me, it's particularly irritating and un-funny. the music is impossible to listen to, the dialogue is like gravel in my ears and the jokes... I love The Writers Almanac, his voice and tone is so soothing and the content is always interesting. "Be well, do good work, and keep in touch." love it. how could someone responsible for this gem could have gone so awry over the years. this show used to be tolerable, even somewhat enjoyable. those days are done...

as a musician who's music somewhat parallels the usual fare on this program, I will no doubt be killing any possibility of ever appearing on this show with this public opinion, but I just can't keep it to myself anymore. I can't take it.

cinematography, dirt, jumps:

I stumbled on this nasty crash on the track. I had a similar experience my first night racing at the velodrome in Colorado Springs when I was 16. I still bear the scars, couldn't sleep on my left side for 3 months (still can't and I believe it's because of the conditioning of that sleep-period).

I think if more NASCAR fans knew about this type of thing, there would be a lot more velodromes in this country.

tomorrow I will return to positivity, blame it on a case of the Mondays.